CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — Recently named Major
League Lacrosse MVP Brendan Mundorf suffered what appeared to be a
left foot or ankle injury during the Denver Outlaws' practice
Friday afternoon ahead of Saturday's MLL semifinal against the Long
Island Lizards.

In a live 6-on-6 drill during the early part of practice at
Harvard Stadium, Mundorf appeared to get hit on the outside of his
left foot with a stick. There was some confusion as to how the
injury occurred, but Mundorf did not roll his ankle. He limped
gingerly toward midfield and eventually sat on the turf where the
Outlaws' training staff attended to him. He was seen pointing at
his foot below the ankle, and he took off his cleats and socks.

Mundorf briefly re-entered practice for about 10 minutes —
while Denver walked-through its offensive sets — before
sitting out for good. Afterward, he walked gingerly to the locker
room and emerged with an Ace bandage on his ankle and shoelaces
undone.

Asked how he felt, Mundorf said he was "fine" and downplayed the
injury, but he was still walking with a limp and appeared to be in
pain.

"I just got checked in the side of my leg. It's not even really
my ankle. It's fine," Mundorf said. "We already [got it checked
out]. It's just a bruise."

Should Mundorf be limited or not be able to play Saturday, it
would be a big blow to the Outlaws' title chances. The offense is
built around the seven-year veteran, who was named MVP on Thursday.
With 59 points (32 goals, 27 assists), Mundorf ranked second in the
league in scoring behind only Paul Rabil.

"It feels good," Mundorf said of winning the award, "but if you
don't win a championship, it's not going to mean a damn thing."

Bayhawks' Smith Back in Action

Chesapeake Bayhawks faceoff specialist Alex Smith will show you
the scars up and down his left arm. About a year ago, he had two
ligaments removed from the inside of his left forearm and graphed
into the elbow in that same arm, a procedure commonly referred to
as Tommy John surgery. But he's able to play now.

He tore the ligaments in the elbow in the third game of the
Bayhawks' 2011 season but played through the injury after an MRI
revealed its extent. He opted to wait to have surgery until the
last week of September, three weeks after the season ended in a MLL
semifinal loss to the Cannons in Annapolis, Md.

Smith said full rehabilitation typically lasts 18 months, but
Smith is back just under a year since surgery. He made his 2012
debut just two weeks ago in the Bayhawks' final regular season
game, winning 9-of-18 faceoffs. Second-year pro Adam Rand had been
the team's primary faceoff taker throughout the season.

"I've been doing a lot of weightlifting, doing a lot of
exercises to get it back into shape," Smith said.

Bayhawks coach Dave Cottle said on Wednesday's MLL
teleconference the team had not yet decided if Smith would play
Saturday, but after Friday's practice Smith said he would indeed
play.

Bocklet's Hardened Hand

Denver long-stick midfielder Matt Bocklet broke his left thumb
earlier this month and missed the Outlaws' final regular-season
game against Chesapeake. On Friday, Bocklet practiced fully with a
hard cast on his left hand under the glove. He also wore a roughly
four-inch hardened plastic strip over the thumb portion of the
glove. The thick plastic was fastened with two Phillips head
screws.

"It's well-protected under there," Bocklet said, adding that he
expected to play Saturday against Long Island.

Other Sights, Sounds and Observations

Cannons faceoff specialist Chris Eck (knee) did not practice
with the team Friday. Eck did not play in Boston’s regular
season finale. Backup John Ortolani did, winning 22 of 36 faceoffs
against the Ohio Machine, and could be in line to start Saturday.
... MLL Defenseman of the Year, Lee Zink of Denver, was not in town
yet for the Outlaws' practice on Friday, but is expected to play
Saturday. ... Most of the Long Island Lizards bussed up to
Cambridge, Mass., including head coach Joe Spallina. A few others
flew or took the train. "Get that bus ride out of you," Lizards
faceoff specialist Greg Gurenlian said while leading team stretches
at the start of practice. ... Denver faceoff specialist Anthony
Kelly, who was said to be dealing with a hamstring injury, showed
no ill effects ... Bayhawks attackman Ben Rubeor is expected to be
announced as coach of a Baltimore area high school boys' varsity
team soon. ... Each team practiced 75 minutes. The Bayhawks were
first, followed by Denver, Long Island and home-standing Boston.
... The weather forecast for the weekend here looks superb: highs
near 80 degrees on Saturday and Sunday with no more than a 20
percent chance of rain. So likely no rain, much less a hurricane
like last year in Annapolis, Md., when Saturday's pair of MLL semifinals was played through a State
of Emergency in Maryland because of Hurricane
Irene.

Check back to LaxMagazine.com throughout the weekend for
live coverage from MLL Championship Weekend.